Sirius Black II
'Sirius Black II '(15 November, 1877 - 30 December, 1952) was a pure-blood wizard who attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from 1 September, 1889 to June of 1896. He was the son of Headmaster Phineas Nigellus Black and his wife Ursula Black (née Flint). His father was a greatly influential man in education, but he was truthfully one of the most hated Hogwarts Headmasters of all time. He was the brother of Cygnus Black III, Phineas Black II, Arcturus Black II, and Belvina. He married Hesper Gamp and was the father of Arcturus, Lycoris, and Regulus I. He was the grandfather of Orion and Lucretia, and the great-grandfather of Sirius, Regulus II, Altair, and Aquila Black. Biography Early life Sirius was born on 15 November, 1877, to Phineas Nigellus Black and his wife Ursula Black (née Flint) in London, Middlesex, England. He was believed to have been born in Grimmauld Place, the ancestral home of the male line of Blacks, the house sitting in Islington borough since the mid-18th century. His birth was announced in the Daily Prophet and his christening was held with much pomp and circumstance. He was the new Heir to the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, and would inherit the family seat on the Wizenagmot when he grew old enough. When he was two years old, his younger brother, Cygnus III, was born. The two brothers were as thick as thieves and a photograph was published of them in the Daily Prophet, one of the first of its kind, in 1880. Sirius enjoyed a very social childhood. He was instructed in the ways of his Noble House, and studied several languages, including French, German, Latin, and Gobbledegook. He learned calligraphy, astronomy, and many other subjects in his early childhood. That being said, he was also a very socialised child. His parents often hosted get-togethers at No. 12 and were often invited to other pure-bloods' homes. He, along with his brother, presented at family gatherings where his parents would tout their children's success. When Sirius was six years old, his mother gave birth to another baby boy, Phineas Nigellus II, followed by another baby boy, Arcturus, when Sirius was seven. Then, when Sirius was nine, his mother gave birth to a baby girl, who she named Belvina. Sirius had many siblings growing up and, in an age where it was a sign of prosperity to have so many children, the House of Black surely set an example. His paternal grandparents were Cygnus Black II, and Elladora Black (née Maxime), and they had passed away long before Sirius himself was born. His maternal grandparents however, Llewellyn Flint and Gwendoline Flint (née ap Morgan), were longer living. Sirius had a number of maternal first cousins, but only one paternal first cousin by blood- and because Alice Hitchens was the daughter of his disowned Aunt Iola, he was likely unaware of the relation. Amongst the Flints were Flavia, Fulvia, Otto, Earlene, and Petronia. Flavia was Sirius's age and thus they spent the most time together. Hogwarts years Sirius received his Hogwarts letter in the summer of 1889. He was believed to have purchased a wand made of elm and dragon heartstring at Ollivander's Wand Shop some time before attending. He boarded the Hogwarts Express in London on 1 September, 1889, and that night, he was sorted into Slytherin. That October, however, his mother, Ursula Flint, passed away. He travelled back to London for the funeral and she was laid to rest in Kensal Green Cemetery, London. His mother's death reportedly took a heavy toll on him, as he always relied on his mother for advice, and would now have to find that himself. Despit this, he achieved ten O.W.L.s and ten N.E.W.T.s examinations with a majority of them being outstanding, as was the standard that the Black family set for themselves, by 1896, at which point he left the school. Later life In the spring of 1898, Sirius expressed interest in courting the youngest daughter of Hector Gamp II, Hesper. Hesper was the daughter of Miriam Selwyn, a member of the Noble and Ancient House of Selwyn, who was of the opinion that Sirius had good prospects. Hesper agreed to marry him in 1899, and they married in a lavish ceremony in Tisbury, Wiltshire, England, on the Black family's largest country estate, on 24 May, 1900. Their firstborn son and heir, Arcturus, was born on 12 December, 1901, in London. Sirius named him for his beloved brother, Arcturus. Their second child, a daughter, was born on 12 August, 1904, and she was named Lycoris. Their third and final child, Regulus I, was born on 22 September, 1906. His younger brother, Phineas Nigellus Black II, was disowned and struck off of the family tapestry for campaigning for muggle-born rights, in 1924. It was one of the last acts Phineas Nigellus Black I performed as Head, and he passed away on 10 June, 1925. From that point onward, Sirius became Head of the House of Black, and inherited his father's duties and responsibilities in regards to managing the estates and the Wizenagmot. It is unknown whether Sirius was close to his younger brother, Phineas, but it was known that he was close to his brother Cygnus, and his brother Arcturus. Phineas, after becoming disowned, fled to France and married a muggle-born woman there. In 1913, he became the father to a son, but Sirius likely did not keep track of his brother's whereabouts after he was disowned. In 1924, Sirius's son, Arcturus, married Melania E Macmillan, the daughter of Ambrose Macmillan and his wife Blodwen Macmillan (née Carrow), and the wedding was widely considered by many the social event of the decade. Following the union, Arcturus and Melania embarked on a holiday around the world. They visited Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, and New York City in the United States of America before finally coming home. The holiday lasted six months and photos of the trip can be found in the Black family archives. Their first child, Lucretia Misapinoa Black, was born on 12 April, 1925. Her birth was marked by the Daily Prophet in a congratulatory announcement that took up a quarter of a page. A few years later, their son and heir, Orion Regulus Black, was born on 18 May, 1929. His birth was marked by pomp and celebration. Orion was the new Heir to the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, and witches and wizards around the United Kingdom were often interested to see photographs of the tot, which were published in the Daily Prophet. Sirius, moved out of No. 12 Grimmauld Place when his wife, Hesper, passed away on 11 January 1930, most likely to one of the other Black family properties. It marked the head's retreat into seclusion, rarely commenting on wizarding matters or politics, and leaving most of the Head's responsibilities to his son. Global Wizarding War Thirteen years later, his brother, Cygnus III, died unexpectedly at the age of 64 on 4 November, 1943. His death was unrelated to the Global Wizarding War, but his death was cause for Sirius to completely retreat from the public eye, while the conflict played out around him between Aurors and Grindelwald's Acolytes. His disowned brother, Phineas, as well as his wife, Elinor, son, Èdouard, and grandchildren, Thérèse and Amélie, were murdered by supporters of Grindelwald in December of 1944. Sirius likely heard of the tragedy, as it made international headlines, but he did not comment on it. After the end of the Global Wizarding War, Sirius's son, Arcturus, was awarded the Order of Merlin, First Class, for "Services to the Ministry" in 1945 for donating a large sum of money in order to rebuild magical Britain, which had been crumbling due to the result of the Dark Wizard Grindelwald terrorising the country. Sirius never directly interfered before the conflict ended, but put up a large front of money in order to fix infrastructure, which benefited all witches and wizards. His charitable donation, which was the first, encouraged other pure-bloods, such as Septimus Malfoy (who also received an Order of Merlin for this endeavour) to put up money to rebuild. At the time, Arcturus was scrutinised by the greater wizarding community for putting up such funds, and some pure-bloods saw this as a condemnation of Grindelwald and everything he stood for. This caused a major political scandal for the House of Black, which required a statement from the Head, Sirius himself, to settle the debacle. His words were printed in the Daily Prophet on the second page, writing that "my son's charitable donation was not meant to be seen as representative of the Family's views or political standings. It was but a choice of his own to help the needy in the Wizarding World, after a conflict which has no doubt desecrated many. I urge the greater Wizarding community to view the contribution without boundaries, as the British Wizarding World rebuilds itself after such devastation and loss of life." Some have said that Sirius's comment referenced the deaths of Phineas Nigellus II and his wife, their son, and their grandchildren, but it is unclear. It is also unknown whether Sirius's son's donation was motivated by political advancement or because he may have witnessed the devastations Wizarding Britain experienced because of the Dark Lord Grindelwald. Regardless, his actions were able to convince even Septimus Malfoy, a notoriously slippery individual, into donating as well. Death Sirius Black II passed away unexpectedly on 30 December, 1952, leaving his duties and his titles to pass on to his eldest son, Arcturus, who was well into adulthood by this time. He was preceded in death by his parents, Phineas Nigellus Black and Ursula Black (née Flint), his brother, Cygnus, his wife, Hesper, as well as his disowned brother, Phineas II. He was survived by his brother, Arcturus I, his sister, Belvina, his three loving children, Arcturus II, Lycoris, and Regulus I, and his two grandchildren, Orion and Lucretia Black. Etymology Sirius is the name of the Dog Star (Alpha Canis Majoris), which with an apparent magnitude of -1.46 is the brightest star in the night sky. Category:Characters Category:19th century individuals Category:20th century individuals Category:House of Black Category:Patriarchs Category:Married individuals Category:Widowed individuals Category:House of Flint descendants Category:Pure-bloods Category:Elm wands Category:Dragon heartstring cores Category:Died of old age Category:English individuals Category:Individuals from Middlesex Category:Scorpios Category:1870s births Category:1950s deaths Category:Individuals Sorted in 1889 Category:Slytherins Category:Residents of No. 12 Grimmauld Place Category:Descendants of Salazar Slytherin